Search Results (15)

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt (2015), a role-playing game developed by CD Projekt RED, exhibits enduring appeal even ten years after its release. The game features European folkloric and Gothic aesthetics that highlight its uniqueness and gained good reception among global players. Yet, the mechanism of this transnational and transcultural appeal is still insufficiently researched. This article challenges debates about the ephemeral nature of internet trends as digital folklore, analysing how regional folk traditions converge into cultural globalisation through interactive media such as video games. The main approach of this study is literary and cultural, adopting digital folklore theory, Globalgothic theory, and Benedict Anderson’s imagined communities. This article also examines in-game quests and landscape aesthetics as part of gameplay through close reading. This study finds that the game interprets regional folk traditions into universal Gothic themes through players’ participatory performance, decontextualised narrative design, and virtual world construction. A new form of digital folklore emerges in the Witcher Universe as an imagined community forms in the virtualised reality. At the same time, longstanding folkloric and literary traditions function as an anchor for this rejuvenated digital folklore and community. Full article

Although monetization has been widely discussed in digital games, less attention has been paid to how it is discussed in narrative-centered Interactive Full-Motion Video (FMV) Games, where user experience depends heavily on continuity, completeness, and emotional engagement. Addressing this gap, this study analyzes 8676 Steam user reviews of Road to Empress I using NLP-based preprocessing, semantic analysis, sentiment analysis, and LDA topic modeling. The results indicate that the review corpus was organized around several interconnected dimensions, including narrative progression, character engagement, audiovisual performance, interactivity, and payment structure, with narrative-related concerns occupying a central position. Compared with the full corpus, the identified monetization-related review subset showed a less positive sentiment distribution, suggesting that monetization-related discussion within this subset was associated with more negative evaluations. Topic modeling further indicated three prominent concerns: interrupted narrative continuity, perceived incompleteness, and dissatisfaction with value for money. Overall, the findings suggest that, within the identified subset, monetization was discussed not merely as a pricing issue, but as part of the broader experiential structure through which continuity, completeness, and value were judged. The study contributes to research on Interactive FMV Games by foregrounding monetization as an experiential dimension and offers practical implications for designing less disruptive monetization strategies in narrative-centered interactive products. Full article

This study co-designed and developed multimodal educational games in collaboration with parents and teachers to engage girls in STEM from early childhood onward. Recent studies examine the supportive and complementary role of digital educational technology, such as multimodal games, in engaging girls in STEM education during primary and secondary schooling. Different skills, such as computational thinking, mathematical and scientific skills, can be developed via simulations, models, narrative-rich videos, and digital games. However, there is limited research on how parents and teachers perceive how multimodal games can engage children, especially girls in STEM, in early years learning environments, both at home and in formal educational classroom play-based learning contexts. Employing a multi-case study approach, the study conducted focus group discussions (N = 10) with 15 parents and 15 teachers of children from birth to 8 years of age. The theoretical framework underpinning Bronfenbrenner’s socioecological lens guided the thematic data analysis, particularly acknowledging theoretical ideas that a young girl’s natural learning environment comprises parents, siblings, peers, and early childhood professionals (e.g., educators) who play an essential role in the development of a child’s early STEM engagement. Findings indicate the essential role of the pedagogue (both parents and educators), with multimodal technologies (games) acting as the third teacher, being critical in scaffolding girls’ early STEM education by capitalising on multimodal learning environments. Implications pertain to designing hands-on, multimodal games that enable children to engage seamlessly with science and mathematics concepts through a variety of design features, including problem-solving, doing, constructing, role-play, and gamification. Full article

This article critically examines the growing interest in what most contemporary scholars consider still a new and underdeveloped mode of environmental storytelling in video games. Different models of games that provide strong narrative techniques within highly detailed, environmentally sophisticated land/soundscapes have been released over the last decade by well-known studios like Fullbright Productions, Giant Sparrow and Campo Santo. This new perspective will draw several critical questions formed from prior research in several foundational articles, the area of game studies and several journals directed at the question of how game spaces function as narrative devices. For example, an early 2016 article by John Barber for the Cogent Arts and Humanities, “Digital storytelling: New opportunities for humanities scholarship and pedagogy” was one of the first essays to explore how Fullbright’s well-known game Gone Home utilizes spatial design, object placement, and ambient details to convey stories without explicit narration. Gone Home, according to Barber and many others, continues to emphasize environmental storytelling as a form of semiotic communication—one where the “text” is the game world itself, inviting players to read and interpret more complex layers of literary meaning. Contemporary scholars have built on these more foundational studies to consider how AI and procedural generation further complicate narrative agency and structure in digital spaces, enabling the current study to consider what could be considered a distinctly post-AI theoretical perspective based upon these primary determinants: (a) how game environments may dynamically adapt narratives in response to player interaction and algorithmic input, and (b) the evolving notion of narrative agency in digital spaces where human and machine contributions intertwine in AI systems. The two chief aims of this proposal are thus to reconsider traditional environmental storytelling within new innovative, post-GenAI narrative frameworks and, looking at contemporary insights from leading examples in the field, deepen current academic understandings of narrative spaces in games from new narratological perspectives. Studies in this area seem uniquely valuable, given the rapid development of GenAI tools in creative content production and what appears to be a new epoch in narrative engagement in all interactive media. Full article

Urban heritage, when enhanced by digital technologies, can become a living laboratory. This study explores the Art Nouveau Path, a mobile augmented reality game implemented in Aveiro, Portugal, as part of the EduCITY Digital Teaching and Learning Ecosystem. Designed as a circular path of eight georeferenced points of interest, it integrates narrative cartography, multimodal media, and sustainability competences framed by GreenComp, the European Sustainability Framework. A DBR approach guided the study, combining four interconnected datasets: the game’s structured curriculum review by 3 subject specialists (T1-R), gameplay logs from 118 student groups (4248 responses), post-game reflections from 439 students (S2-POST), and in-field observations from 24 teachers (T2-OBS). Descriptive statistics and thematic coding were triangulated to examine attention to architectural details, the mediational role of AR, spatial trajectories, and reflections about sustainability. The results present overall accuracy (85.33%), with particularly strong performance on video items (93.64%), stable outcomes on AR tasks (85.52%), and lower accuracy in denser urban contexts. Qualitative data highlight AR as a catalyst for perceiving hidden features, collaboration, and connecting heritage with sustainability. The study concludes that location-based AR games can generate semantically enriched geoinformation. They also act as cartographic interfaces that embed narrative and competence-oriented learning into urban heritage contexts. Full article

Media shape and reflect social imaginaries, influencing collective beliefs, norms, and aspirations. Video games and films frequently depict themes like urbanization, dystopian futures, and resource-driven expansion, often envisioning humanity colonizing new planets after depleting Earth’s resources. Such narratives risk reinforcing exploitative attitudes toward the environment, extending them to new frontiers. Research has shown that media, especially video games, influence societal perceptions and shape future possibilities. While largely reflecting anthropocentric worldviews, these media also have the potential to promote ecocentric perspectives. In the context of biodiversity loss and planetary imbalance, media’s role in fostering non-anthropocentric values is crucial. This study introduces the Non-Anthropocentric Media Evaluation Questionnaire (NAMEQ), a tool designed to help media producers assess whether their work aligns with ecocentric principles, and to support academic researchers and students in the study and analysis of media from a biocentric perspective. Applying this framework to 138 widely distributed video games and films reveals a strong dominance of anthropocentric narratives. While some works incorporate ecocentric themes, they remain inconsistent. The findings underscore the need for a more deliberate and coherent representation of bio-centric values in media, advocating for a shift in cultural narratives toward perspectives that recognize and respect the intrinsic value of the non-human world. Full article

In the digital era, technology is being utilized for educational purposes and to develop interventions. There are several known applications of technology in multiple disciplines. However, the social sciences, in particular, have been slow to adopt technologies for intervention, prevention, and educational tools. In addition, for those who want to integrate technology into current programming or develop technology to address a problem, there are no resources on how to engage in the integration or development process. This paper sought to address this gap by documenting the development process of a video game that was created to address the issue of gender-based violence among college students. Specifically, it focuses on the design and piloting of a narrative-based game centered on beliefs and behaviors related to gender-based violence. The aim of the game is to offer an alternative approach to existing prevention programs, particularly targeting emerging adults in college settings due to their prolific and preference for the use of technology, the high rates of sexual and dating violence on college campuses, and their need for more engaging gender-based violence prevention education strategies. This paper intended to contribute to ongoing dialogue and efforts related to the creation and integration of technology in the helping professions. Full article

Video games, as interactive artifacts within the continuum of information and communication technology (ICT), encapsulate an ontological inquiry: which mechanism maintains user engagement while evolving with ICT-driven innovations? How is this mechanism structured within video games in the competitive industry? This study analyzes the emergent narrative of the Animal Crossing franchise, focusing on the interplay between persistence and evolution, aligning with our inquiry by examining how technological integration, interactive design, and player agency co-construct narrative adaptations across generations. Employing an integrated approach, we introduced the ENSF framework to analyze emergent narrative mechanisms. On this basis, the qualitative walkthrough method and quantitative unsupervised learning methods—principal component analysis and VADER techniques—were used to examine narrative flow, linguistic metrics, and sentiment tendencies across four game generations and official materials (N = 37). This study contributes to (a) establishing the structural emergent narrative simulation framework (ENSF) delineating the narrative techniques’ interrelations—simulation, orientations, story events, resolutions, evaluations, and characters; and (b) interpreting how narrative mechanisms within interactive design balance persistence with evolution, proving that ICT innovations comply with player agency reinforcement. These discoveries establish a hermeneutic proposal identifying the socio-technological characteristics of interactive communications in video game design, emphasizing the dynamic balance within innovative gaming environments. Full article

Background: Exposure to violent content through video games can shape perceptions of aggression as normative or acceptable, potentially desensitizing adolescents to violence and increasing the likelihood that they will engage in aggressive behavior in their real-world interactions. This narrative review examines the relationship between violent video games (VVGs) and youth aggression, addressing (i) VVG exposure through the lens of Social Learning Theory and the General Aggression Model; (ii) the biological determinants of aggressive behavior, including neurophysiological correlates and the potential modulatory role of the gut microbiome; (iii) and current evidence on the influence of VVG exposure on adolescent aggression. Results: VVG exposure may promote moral disengagement and reinforce aggressive behavior through rewarding violent actions, potentially leading to real-life aggression. Exposure to VVGs increases aggression by elevating cortisol levels, activating the sympathetic nervous system, stimulating the brain’s reward system, and disrupting neurotransmitter balance. Alterations in gut microbiome composition could occur as a result of engaging in VVGs, potentially mirroring the physiological responses observed in violent real-world activities. The relationship between VVGs and aggression among adolescents has been widely explored, with studies generally indicating that VVG exposure can lead to desensitization to violence, reduced empathy, and diminished prosocial behavior. VVGs have also been linked to both bullying perpetration and victimization dynamics among adolescents, contributing to mental health issues, which in turn exacerbate problematic gaming behaviors. Conclusions: While there is evidence suggesting that exposure to VVGs is associated with increased adolescent aggression, discrepancies in the literature highlight the need for further research aimed at improving our understanding of this phenomenon. The studies on this topic reveal significant limitations, including a predominance of cross-sectional designs, methodological shortcomings, small sample sizes, and challenges in generalizing results. Factors such as the developmental stages of the participants, the exclusion of females, and unmeasured variables during long follow-up periods further complicate interpretations. Moreover, parental responsibility and the effectiveness of age ratings require closer examination. Full article

Advergames represent a novel product placement strategy that surpasses traditional advertising methods by fostering interaction between brands and their target audiences. This study investigates the unique engagement opportunities provided by video games, focusing mainly on the ‘flow experience’, an intensified state of immersion frequently encountered by players of computer games. Such immersive experiences have the potential to significantly influence a player’s perception, offering a new avenue for advertisements to impact and engage audiences effectively. The primary objective of this research was to examine the influence of advergames on players who are deeply immersed in the gaming experience, with a specific focus on the subsequent effects on brand recognition over time. The study involved 44 software developers, who were evenly divided into two groups for the experiment. Both groups were exposed to an identical gaming environment with the task of locating a designated product within the game. However, one group interacted with an enhanced version of the game, which included additional stimuli—such as dynamic music, an engaging narrative, time constraints, a competitive leaderboard, and immersive voice acting—to intensify the gaming experience. The experiment strategically placed various products within the game, and their detectability was assessed using eye-tracking technology. Following gameplay, participants completed questionnaires that measured their experience with flow state and brand recall. The data were analyzed using the Mann–Whitney U test and correlation analysis to facilitate comparisons. The findings indicated that the product associated with the primary task achieved the highest recall rate between both groups. Furthermore, eye-tracking technology identified the areas in the game that attracted the most attention, revealing a preference for mid- and high-level placements over lower-level ones. Full article

Video games have emerged as a promising tool for enhancing engagement with cultural heritage. However, there is limited knowledge about how existing games can effectively fulfill this role. This study compiled and analyzed 100 video games based on cultural heritage by adapting an existing framework that includes 10 game attributes for a comparative statistical analysis of the games’ engagement features. These features include narrative-driven gameplay, information capsules, task-driven learning, ease of play, identity-driven content, open-world exploration, people-centered perspectives, meaningfulness, simulation, and verisimilitude. The analysis revealed that while the majority of games adhered to most of the recommended attributes, features such as task-driven learning, open-world exploration, and simulation were either uncommon or rare. These findings highlight a significant opportunity to develop games that incorporate these underrepresented features, thereby providing more immersive and engaging experiences in heritage education. Furthermore, the study offers a systematic overview of existing games that represent cultural heritage, serving as a valuable resource for developers, designers, and educators in this field. Full article

Several studies have researched how people can use the anonymity of the Internet to explore different aspects of their identity. There are many different platforms where one can create a “virtual self” by actively choosing how one presents themselves to others, and each one is designed with different characteristics depending on their purpose: from socialization to professional networking or even entertainment. Different studies have usually focused on specific platforms, but there is no one comparing how people construe their virtual self across different online environments. In this review, we aimed to synthesize research studies carried out about the construal of one’s identity within online platforms and how it can relate to different aspects of participants’ offline identity, such as their self-esteem or self-concept clarity. Data were gathered from 34 publications that researched this topic across different kinds of online platforms. We conducted a quality assessment and a narrative synthesis, reporting and comparing the main findings, as well as identifying possible gaps in the literature. Many studies have explored the idea of people creating either an idealized or accurate version of themselves when construing their online identities. Others have also contemplated the possibility of exploring identities that diverge from both the actual and the ideal self or even an actively negative one. The latter was studied more in the context of video games and other avatar-mediated worlds. We found that people with low self-esteem create a more idealized virtual identity rather than a virtual self that is similar to their offline self. Other variables such as the purpose for using the online platform or self-concept clarity also had a role in virtual self construal, although the latter was only studied in the context of social media. Full article

This article compares Ridley Scott’s film Alien (1979) with Creative Assembly’s video game Alien: Isolation (2014), which is based on Scott’s film. Guidance for academics who teach creative writing—as well as for working screenwriters and video game narrative designers—emerges in the comparison, particularly with regard to the importance of developing strong yet vulnerable main characters who put themselves in danger in order to protect other characters with whom they have meaningful relationships. Examples from other media, including Ira Levin’s Rosemary’s Baby (1967), James Cameron’s Aliens (1986), Telltale Games’ The Walking Dead (2012), and Naughty Dog’s The Last of Us (2013), are also discussed as they relate to larger principles involved in crafting sympathetic characters, realistic settings, and compelling gameplay for media within the horror and sci-fi genres. Full article

Walter Benjamin’s 1936 essay, “The Storyteller” (2006) defines storytelling as a mode of communication that is defined in part by its ability to offer listeners “counsel”, or meaningful wisdom or advice. This article considers the earmarks of storytelling as defined by Benjamin and by contemporary writer Larry McMurtry and argues this type of narrative experience can be offered via interactive media and, in particular, video games. After identifying the key characteristics of storytelling as set forth by Benjamin, the article proposes and advocates for a set of key characteristics of video game storytelling. In doing so, the article argues that effective narrative immersion can offer what Benjamin calls counsel, or wisdom, by refusing to provide pat answers or neat conclusions and suggests these as strategies for game writers and developers who want to provide educational or transformative experiences. Throughout, the article invokes historic and contemporary video games, asking for careful consideration of the ways in which games focused on sometimes highly personal narratives rely on storytelling techniques that instruct and transform and that can provide a rich framework for the design and writing of narrative games. Full article

The mobile internet expands the immersive potential of storytelling by introducing electronic games powered by portable, location-aware interfaces. Mobile gaming has become the latest iteration in a decades-long evolution of electronic games that seek to empower the player not just as an avatar in a gameworld but also as a co-author of that gameworld, alongside the game’s original designers. Location-aware interfaces allow players to implicate places in the physical world as part of their gameworld (and vice versa) for the first time. In addition to empowering the player as a co-author in the process of constructing a compelling gameworld, then, mobile games eschew linear narrative structures in favor of a cooperative storytelling process that is reliant in part on the player’s experience of place. While such an author-player “worldmaking” approach to storytelling is not new, mobile games evolve the process beyond what has yet been possible within the technical and physical constraints of the traditional video gaming format. Location-aware interfaces allow mobile games to extend the worldmaking process beyond the screen and into the physical world, co-opting the player’s sensory experiences of real-world places as potential storytelling tools. In our essay, we theorize the unique storytelling potential of mobile games while describing our experience attempting to harness that potential through the design and implementation of our hybrid-reality game University of Death. Full article